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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/22691056">if i can't have you as a lover...</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/carcinomas/pseuds/carcinomas'>carcinomas</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types, Pocket Monsters: Sword &amp; Shield | Pokemon Sword &amp; Shield Versions</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/F, M/M, Multi</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>In-Progress</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-02-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-02-13</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-04-28 10:13:56</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,445</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/22691056</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/carcinomas/pseuds/carcinomas</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>...i'll take you as a friend.</p>
<p>in which raihan struggles with commitment, leon can't seem to understand why and sonia does her best to protect the two from one another. a short story of friendship, heartbreak and moving on.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Dande | Leon/Kibana | Raihan, Rurina | Nessa/Sonia</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>if i can't have you as a lover...</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Sonia didn’t know what to make of the news. It wasn’t a surprise that Leon and Raihan were dating once again - everyone knew it’d happen. From childhood friends, to rivals and lovers...it was a cliche and the public ate it up each time. She wasn’t surprised when she saw the photos circulating social media (and Raihan’s IG feed). </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The two were leaving a restaurant in Hammerlocke, hand in hand, Raihan waving at whoever had a camera pointed at him, while Leon kept his snapback over his face. Hours later, the two were trending, Leon completely unaware. He didn’t </span>
  <em>
    <span>do </span>
  </em>
  <span>social media, so to be told he was trending was foreign to him. He had official accounts, of course, but for the most part, he wasn’t in charge of them and left everything in the hands of a social media intern.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sonia rubbed her forehead. She loved Leon, but sometimes it felt like she was teaching her grandmother things like this (as smart as her grandmother was). When Leon called and told her he was ‘trending’ and ‘didn’t know why’, she did her best to explain everything to him. And when he didn’t get it, she found herself taking a taxi to his apartment.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There the two were now, having tea while waiting on their lunch to be delivered. She could tell Leon was excited to finally learn social media and Sonia was excited for him. However, she knew where this would go.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Leon and Raihan were her best friends - they all met just a bit before the Galar League, training endlessly with one another until it was time for their challenges. Sonia quit halfway through, but continued to root for the two. Years later, Raihan and Leon were sponsored by numerous companies and lead busy, extravagant lives while Sonia focused on her grandmother’s research.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m sorry about this again...I just never saw a need for social media.” Leon spoke, awkwardly tapping at his phone. Sonia watched him, doing her best to hold back a laugh. After a few moments, she cleared her throat. “It’s no issue, seriously! But you’re the Champion, Lee, so you should at least know how to reply to your followers or something.” She giggles some, her attention focused on her own phone. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You sound like Raihan...honestly, you two make me feel so old..”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Speaking of Raihan.” Sonia started. “You two again, huh? When they said you were trending, I didn’t think it’d be for a date.” A pause. “So are you two…?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Leon blinks. “Are we..? Oh! Dating again? Yeah, I suppose..” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sonia forces a smile. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sonia leans on the table, idly twisting a lock of hair around her finger. She’s silent for a moment before shrugging and waving her hand. “I mean, he’s a great guy - </span>
  <em>
    <span>great guy</span>
  </em>
  <span>, you know? Buuut..” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <strong>--</strong>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Being friends with the two came with hormonal drama. As Sonia remembered it, she spent a great deal third wheeling Raihan and Leon. She couldn’t remember how many times the three of them sat in silence, the two boys exchanging awkward laughs every other second. Or she’d catch Leon staring at Raihan or the other way around. It was cute - but in an annoying way. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>At first, things were cute. Things were </span>
  <em>
    <span>simple</span>
  </em>
  <span>. But when the two declared each other their rivals, things were </span>
  <em>
    <span>intense</span>
  </em>
  <span>. Nonetheless, the fame and the rivalry didn’t change them. However, Raihan was pretty popular - everyone loved him. He was cute, confident and funny, so obviously he was easy to market, especially as the Champion’s rival. Because Raihan was so popular, of course he had people throwing themselves at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>What was Raihan going to do? <em>Say no?</em> He enjoyed the attention, while Leon seethed. At this point, they were teenagers, still growing used to the sudden fame and attention. Leon had to stay positive - it was his image, after all - and ignore whatever antics Raihan had going on. He was Galar’s smiling Champion, but behind closed doors, he was a mess. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sonia lost track of how many times Leon would call her at the early hours, either ready to cry or vent for hours about how Raihan would openly flirt and entertain others while doing the same to Leon. To Sonia, this wasn’t a surprise. Raihan was naturally friendly (and flirty), so of course others were drawn to him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>So when the two started ‘dating’ (if she could even call it that), Leon was happy. She remembered how nervous he was about asking Raihan out and how he almost considered not going through with it. She pushed him, because she knew he’d finally be happy if they became official - and exclusive.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>For a while, things were okay. The public ate up the teen couple and Leon was finally happy. Raihan didn’t seem too into it, but they were best friends - whatever made Leon happy made him happy. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>While Leon was Champion, he was still able to attend school with Raihan and Sonia, however he didn’t have much of a social life. Chairman Rose gave him special training after classes, so Sonia and Raihan were often left alone. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>After class one day, the two decided to take a trip to the boutique. While Raihan browsed for a pair of shoes, Sonia followed behind him, a few dresses and tops hung over her arm. After a moment of awkward silence, she spoke.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“So, how are you and Lee?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Raihan didn’t look away from his shoes. “We’re cool.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sonia stared at the other for a moment, expecting more. When he continued to tie his laces, she clears her throat. He looks back. “What?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Just cool? Not great or </span>
  <em>
    <span>fantastic </span>
  </em>
  <span>or fun? Just...</span>
  <em>
    <span>cool</span>
  </em>
  <span>?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Raihan shrugs. “Yeah, what else am I supposed to say? It’s not </span>
  <em>
    <span>bad </span>
  </em>
  <span>or anything, it’s just..”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Just cool?” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>There was silence. After a bit, Sonia rolled her eyes. “I’m gonna try these on.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sonia thought it was weird Raihan would say ‘just cool’. They were <em>boyfriends</em> - Leon was extremely into Raihan and she knew Raihan felt the same. So where was his enthusiasm? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A week later, Raihan and Leon broke up. Sonia couldn't feel bad - she was somewhat surprised, but she knew this was coming. Raihan called it off, which surprised no one. From what Leon told her, he made excuses, saying he wasn’t “ready for something this intense” and that Leon should "focus" on the league. All were fair points, but </span>
  <em>
    <span>who knew?</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>She remembered holding a crying Leon for an hour, wondering what he did wrong. He told her Raihan wanted to stay friends, which was fair. Sometimes friends didn’t have to date and <em>that was okay</em> - some friendships were okay on their own. She told him that and at the time, he believed her. He understood. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Surprisingly, he bounced back pretty quick and focused on his championship. The league that year was intense. Raihan, as always, was looking for ways to beat Leon and he told himself that year was going to be </span>
  <em>
    <span>his year.</span>
  </em>
  
</p>
<p>
  <span>That day, Sonia decided she and Nessa would watch the match together. Nessa was a close friend of Sonia’s and outside of the boys, the two frequently kept up with one another. Thanks to Nessa’s connections, the two were able to get front row seats.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think Lee’s gonna wash Raihan.” </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Nessa raised a brow. “Seriously? You know, normally I’d agree, but Raihan’s been working hard this past year. I don’t think Lee will stand a chance. I mean, look at them.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sonia wouldn’t forget this battle. Ever since Leon became Champion, there was always playful banter between the two before the start of a match. But today was different - they didn’t even look at each other and they kept their distance. Instead, all that could be heard were the shouts from the crowd and the announcers.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Needless to say, Leon kept his title. It was a quick match, Raihan leaving as soon as it was over. Leon stayed behind, basking in his victory once again. His smiles for the cameras and reporters were as genuine as always, but Sonia knew the truth.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>And that’s where it all began.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <strong>--</strong>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s a great guy, </span>
  <em>
    <span>buuut</span>
  </em>
  <span>..?” Leon squints. Sonia shook her head.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“</span>
  <em>
    <span>Uh</span>
  </em>
  <span> - sorry, Lee. Anyway, Raihan’s great. We’ve all been friends for so long, you know? Just..you know how he is. You’re intense, he’s not. You know, relationships and Raihan are --”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know, I know, but I feel like this time’s different. We’ve both matured and I think we’re in a better spot. That, and..oh, food’s here.” Leon left the table and made his way towards the door.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Sighing, Sonia leaned on her fist.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Well, as long as they were happy.</span>
</p>
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